Fragile
by Lady Callista
Summary: Kurt had bottled everything, the pain and the fear and the anger and the embarrassment, he had bottled it and had a good time at the dance. He had smiled and laughed and shown everyone exactly what he had told Blaine, that they couldn't touch him. Only they could. Fifth in the "When Flowers Bloom" series.


Dislaimer: Glee belongs to FOX, the writers, producers, actors, etc. I am making no money from this, and no copywrite infringement is intended. All quotes were found online and are attributed to their authors if I could find them.

AN: Apparently my muse isn't done with Prom yet, so it's another angsty one. And somewhat sappy and maybe overly dramatic as well, but well, it kinda wrote itself. Because Blaine gave Kurt the support and helped him find the courage to go back in and get crowned, but that doesn't mean all the feelings were dealt with.

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Delicate

By Lady Callista

_OoOoOoO_

"_You are like a flower, the stem resembles your strength, and the petals resemble how delicate you are." -Farhan Qureshi_

_OoOoOoO_

"Blaine, wait." Kurt said softly as his boyfriend turned off the car and reached for the door handle.

"What's up?" Blaine glanced over, the smile on his face falling at once when he took in the glimmer of tears in Kurt's eyes.

"I can't… I can't go in there, it's just…" Kurt knew that he needed to be more articulate, needed to explain, but he just couldn't. Everything inside him was twisting and shaking, and he just knew that he couldn't do it.

_It _being Rachel's after-prom party, with more lights and more music, and more dancing, and still being surrounded by happy people, and knowing Puck happy drunk people, and it was different because it was his friends and he knew they weren't part of it and they supported him, but… but he just couldn't keep smiling and dancing and being okay for much longer.

"Kurt…" Blaine's voice was soft as he reached out with one hand, shocked when for the first time ever Kurt drew away from his touch, his arms wrapping around himself and squeezing so hard his knuckles turned white.

"Please…"

The worry lines on Blaine's face deepened, but he thought that maybe he understood what was going on, and with that he said softly, "Give me a second."

Mercedes was just getting out of the car parked behind them, and Blaine moved quickly to her, saying too softly for any of the other kids laughing their way towards the house to hear, "We're just gonna go, tell everyone not to worry but we're…"

"He's not okay, is he?"

Mercedes got it at once, as Blaine had known she would, and he simply shook his head.

"Text me, or any of us, at any time." Mercedes leaned in, placing a gentle hand on Blaine's arm. "Whatever he needs, whatever you need, we'll… we'll come."

"I know you will." Blaine whispered back, pulling her into a loose hug that she firmly returned. "He's so lucky to have friends like you."

"You've got us too, honey." Mercedes pulled back, her eyes full of sympathy as they flicked to the top of Kurt's head, barely visible over the headrest, before meeting Blaine's again. "Now go and take care of your boy."

Blaine nodded, and ignored Rachel calling his name from across the yard as he got back into the car. Mercedes would explain, would take care of everyone else. All he had to do now was take care of Kurt, and he tried to push down the first trickle of panic because he wasn't quite sure how he was going to do that.

"Where, uh, where do you want to go?" Blaine asked softly the instant he slid back in, pulling his seatbelt on automatically before starting the car.

"I… I don't know, I just… I can't… it feels like…" Kurt's face and body were both tight with tension, and he could feel the slow cracking of _something_ inside of him. All the courage it took to go back into that gym, all the strength it took to stand up there and make a quip, to dare people to laugh at their cruel joke… it was almost gone now. He didn't know where to go, doesn't really know anything but that he has to get away.

He couldn't pretend, not for much longer, and he didn't want to be with anyone but Blaine when the cracks lead to the entire dam breaking.

"My, uh, my parents are out of town for the weekend." Blaine offered hesitantly. The fact that neither his parents nor Kurt's would approve barely crossed his mind, because he honestly wasn't thinking of _doing _anything they wouldn't approve of.

He'd just never seen Kurt look this fragile before and all he wanted was to hold him, and he couldn't think of anywhere else they could be alone. He wanted to pull him into his arms right this second, but he knew Kurt well enough to know why he had pulled away a minute ago. Offering comfort right now would be the straw that triggered the meltdown, and Kurt didn't want that to happen here, with their friends still so close.

Blaine's house. The thought flashed bright in Kurt's mind, but it wasn't accompanied with the excitement he knew he should feel, knew he would have felt just hours ago. He'd never felt less like fooling around, and he knew Blaine wasn't really suggesting that, although they might be tempting fate, or just hormones, as he had learned a few days ago when he innocently asked Carole to close the door. But the idea that they could be alone, well, that was all he wanted, and...and his dad wasn't expecting him home, everyone was supposed to stay at Rachel's for the night, and he knew his friends would cover but… but his hands were shaking now and Blaine's house was just too far away, just too long to hold himself together.

"My house, just… I can't…"

That's all he managed to say, but thankfully Blaine didn't question him. Whether it was because he'd figured out the reason on his own or because he was just willing to do as Kurt asked, well, Kurt wasn't sure. He also didn't care as long as the one person he trusted enough to break down around got him to a place he felt safe enough to do so.

He realized that Blaine understood when he took one hand off the wheel and set it on the seats between them, not touching him but offering the touch if he wanted it.

Now that they were safely away from everyone, Kurt took Blaine's hand and held it like the lifeline it was. And tried his hardest, for the ten minutes it took to get to his house, to think about nothing at all.

Blaine held his silence on the short drive, casting worried glances at Kurt and the now visible tremors running through his body, the tears slowly falling from his eyes.

It brought back to his mind the Kurt of a few hours ago, the one who had broken in the hallway before finding the courage to go back into the gym. He had bottled everything, the pain and the fear and the anger and the embarrassment, he had bottled it and had a good time at the dance. He had smiled and laughed and shown everyone exactly what he had told Blaine, that they couldn't touch him.

Only they could.

And they had.

They had hurt this perfect, amazing boy, and Blaine didn't have the slightest idea on how to even begin fixing it. With all the advice he'd ever given Kurt, all the times he had succeeded in being there for him and helping him, now when it mattered most Blaine couldn't think of a single thing to say.

He had seen Kurt hurt before, yes. But he had never seen him broken. Never seen him shattered. And he had a feeling he was about to. Suddenly the calm, dapper, sensible-young-man and knowledgeable mentor auras melted away, and in their place was a nervous teenaged boy scared of messing things up even more. And so he remained silent.

Blaine turned slightly awkwardly into Kurt's driveway, grateful when Kurt released his hand without prompting. He quickly threw the car into park, grabbed his keys, and was opening Kurt's door for him before the other boy had even released his seatbelt.

Kurt took the hand Blaine offered, feeling as if he were moving through a fog as he stood, keeping Blaine's hand in his as he moved mechanically towards his house and pulled his keys from his pocket.

Blaine gently took the keys from Kurt's shaking hand after his third failure to get the key into the lock, opening the door and letting Kurt move past him into the house, waiting for a clue as to what Kurt needed. He'd had to drop Kurt's hand to get the keys and the door, and Kurt didn't join them again but continued moving.

Blaine followed him into the living room, feeling like he was hovering uselessly, watching as Kurt sank onto the couch. He knew just how bad things were when Kurt didn't bother to smooth the kilt under him before sitting down, but he still didn't know what Kurt needed, and he was scared of doing anything to make it worse.

"Blaine."

The voice was so hesitant and broken that Blaine almost didn't recognize it as Kurt's, but he immediately joined Kurt on the sofa, pulling a knee up so he could sit sideways facing the other boy. "What do you need?" It came out in a breathy whisper, and Blaine knew deep in his heart that no matter what it was he would do it for Kurt. That realization caused him to take a deep breath, but he quickly bottled the rush of emotions to analyze later. To be taken out and marveled over when they weren't tainted by tears.

"Take it off."

Blaine didn't have to ask what Kurt meant, but reached up and carefully took the crown off of Kurt's head, having the random thought that at least someone had thought to get another crown to replace the queen's traditional tiara. He made a note to find out who he had to thank for that, but knew Mercedes was the likely candidate.

Blaine set the crown on the table with a soft clink, studying what he could see of Kurt's face in the dim light coming in the windows, trying to get a clue as to where Kurt's thoughts were trailing. He couldn't help if Kurt wouldn't talk, and Kurt had pulled so far into himself that Blaine was afraid that even speaking again would disturb whatever was going on in Kurt's head, maybe make it worse.

He held out a hand again, offering whatever Kurt needed, and this time his name came out in a sob as Kurt threw himself against Blaine's chest, arms wrapping around him and clinging so tightly that Blaine felt his breath catch. His arms went around Kurt without thought, one wrapping around his shoulders and holding him close while the other went lower, hand rubbing soothingly up and down his spine. He could feel his shoulder growing wet with tears, feel a few of his own sliding down his cheeks, and wanted to kick himself for his words the other day on how it could be _so much worse._

This was so very different from what had happened to him at the last dance he had been to, but as Kurt had said, secret ballot or not it was still hate. And this hadn't been just three classmates but had been a majority of his class, which in many ways made Blaine think it was worse.

At least he had been there, Blaine's thoughts continued to race as he stroked Kurt soothingly, unwilling to imagine what would have happened if he hadn't been there. If he had run again, been a coward and refused to go because of the kilt…

Blaine was snapped out of his thoughts when the living room lights blinked on, and his head jerked towards the archway leading towards the stairs, his eyes widening as he saw Burt standing there in sweatpants and a t-shirt with a confused look on his face.

The confusion switched to anger, but even as Blaine was realizing what this had to look like Kurt let out another loud sob and the anger melted away to be replaced by intense worry as Burt crossed the room to them faster than Blaine had ever seen him move.

"What happened?" Burt crouched down next to the couch, putting a hand on Kurt's back and looking up at Blaine with concern.

Blaine's eyes flicked to the coffee table, and he saw Burt follow his line of sight to the crown, then turn back quickly with confusion once again the dominate thing showing on his face. Blaine realized why he didn't understand instantly, without the story it didn't make sense, and he whispered softly, "There was a, a write-in winner for Prom Queen. At least they got him a second crown."

Burt swore softly, his eyes sliding shut in defeat before he took a deep breath and opened them, meeting Blaine's eyes with a helplessness Blaine knew all too well.

"How… uh, what…."

"Kurt ran out when they announced it, but I followed him and we talked, and he… I was so proud of him, sir, he went back in and got crowned. And we danced, and he smiled and laughed, and then when we got to Rachel's house for the after party he told me he couldn't stay, couldn't… I brought him here and he just…"

Blaine trailed off when he heard Kurt mumble what might have been a word.

"Kurt?" Burt said gently.

"Tomorrow." Kurt turned his head just enough that he wasn't speaking directly into Blaine's chest, although his arms tightened. "Dad, tomorrow, please. I love you and I'll talk to you, but just… please, I can't do it tonight."

"You don't have to talk if you don't want to, buddy." Burt said softly as his hand stopped stroking over the back of Kurt's shoulder and squeezed it instead.

Kurt's head shifted more, and his eyes opened to make contact with his father's. Just the edge of them Blaine could see clearly showed pleading, and a bone-deep weariness that made his heart ache. "Can Blaine stay with me? Please?"

"Kurt…" Burt's tone was still soft, but there was a warning note creeping into it.

"Dad, Blaine's parents aren't home. We could have… but I'm _asking. _Please."

Kurt's voice was still broken by the occasional sob and sniffle, and Blaine didn't understand why he had stressed the word _asking_ so much, but he knew it referred to something when he saw a thoughtful look come over Burt's face.

"Leave it to you to ask under circumstances where you know I won't say no." The love and commiseration were clear in Burt's soft voice, and he leaned in enough to brush his cheek over Kurt's forehead. "I think you could ask me for anything in the world right now and I'd do it for you."

Blaine was struck by how Burt's words echoed his earlier thought, then was startled as he went on, "And first thing tomorrow I'm calling that principal of yours, and…"

"No!" Kurt's voice was surprisingly sharp.

"Kurt…" Burt started to protest at once, but Blaine understood immediately and only dropped a kiss on Kurt's head.

"No." The word came out harsher than before, but then shifted to something sadder as he concluded by answering the obvious question, "You can't do anything, because then they'll know I was pretending."

"Pretending?" Burt was back to feeling confused. "Kurt what are you talking about?"

Kurt's only answer was to turn his face back into Blaine's chest and start sobbing again, and Blaine resumed running his hands over his back soothingly as he whispered, "Pretending that it doesn't touch us. Pretending that it doesn't hurt. And he was pretending so well that even I couldn't tell, because he's so much stronger than even I realized, but when it hurts this much you can only pretend for so long. But he did it, and that stops meaning something if anyone finds out."

A single tear slipped down Burt's cheek, and his eyes showed a flicker of pride before they slid shut again as he said softly, "I said whatever you want, Kurt. I love you too."

"Thanks for not saying I told you so."

"Kurt, first off I would never say that. Second, this wasn't done at the spur-of-the-moment, it had to be organized." Burt said softly and seriously, not responding to the weakly sarcastic jibe at all. "It wasn't because of the kilt, and I'm not sure if that makes it better or worse."

Blaine wasn't sure either, because that hadn't occurred to him until Burt said it.

"You two go upstairs now and try to sleep. We'll talk in the morning." Burt squeezed Kurt's shoulder one final time before rising, then rested his hand on Blaine's shoulder briefly as well. "And we'll talk about whether this is an exception to the rule or whether the rules are changing some time soon."

"We'll leave the door open, Dad, I'm not… we're not… it's just…"

"I know." Burt cut Kurt off, "And if Blaine lived in town I probably wouldn't even consider changing the rule, although you two are just… but… later. We'll deal with all of this later."

Kurt nodded and cuddled his face back into Blaine's chest, his eyes sliding shut again, as if the conversation had taken the last of his energy.

Burt caught Blaine's eyes, and obviously reassured by whatever he saw there turned and started to slowly head back upstairs.

"Let's get upstairs, sweetie." Blaine said softly as he dropped a kiss on Kurt's forehead. Kurt went still in his arms, and Blaine realized at once what he had said and stammered, "Sorry, I, uh…"

"'Sokay." Kurt mumbled, his arms tightening briefly as he took a deep breath, trying to will his body to move. "Just new. Kinda like it."

"I'm glad. Now, upstairs." Blaine said in an even softer voice.

It took a few minutes, but Kurt slowly managed to gather himself enough to push away from Blaine and climb to his feet, keeping their hands linked as he moved through the dark house on autopilot, Blaine following close behind, his warm presence the only thing allowing Kurt to function even on this minimal level.

Blaine's eyes focused on the bed the moment they entered Kurt's room, but there were neither nerves nor awkwardness shimmering in the room as Kurt pulled a pair of pajamas from his dresser and vanished into his walk-in closet.

Blaine sat in Kurt's desk chair to take off his shoes and socks, then his tie and suit coat, hanging the latter on the chair. He pulled out his phone quickly, texting to Mercedes that things were okay for the night and he'd let her know more tomorrow if Kurt was okay with it. His phone beeped almost immediately, and he smiled at the virtual hug just as Kurt walked out of the closet in simple dark green pajama pants and a t-shirt a shade lighter.

"Don't tell anyone I don't sleep in designer silk." Kurt's small smile didn't reach his eyes, but at least for the moment he had stopped crying.

"Cross my heart." Blaine returned the smile, his voice light but serious. Doing whatever Kurt needed tonight included letting him lead the conversation and the mood, letting him cope and react however he needed to without putting any pressure on him.

Kurt crossed to the dresser again, pulling out another matched pair of cotton pajamas and offering them to Blaine. Their hands brushed when Blaine accepted them, and Kurt whispered softly, "I wouldn't have gotten through tonight without you."

"You would have." Blaine said just as quietly, "But I'm glad you didn't have to."

"If you weren't here right now…"

"I am." Blaine cut him off, leaning in to kiss the single tear that escaped down Kurt's cheek. "I'm going to be here all night, and when you wake up, and if you want when you talk to your dad. I'm going to be here for as long as you want me."

"Does forever work?" Kurt blushed immediately and looked away, but Blaine only leaned in and kissed his cheek again.

"Sounds good to me."

Minutes later they were cuddled together under the covers, Kurt once again in Blaine's arms with his ear resting over the comforting thump-thump of Blaine's heart.

He wasn't okay yet, and all the pain and humiliation wouldn't go away overnight, but he knew that with Blaine beside him he could get through it.

He had thought it so many times it almost seemed like a cliché at this point, but with Blaine beside him he could get though anything.

THE END

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AN2: A reviewer asked why I do so much more from Kurt's perspective than Blaine's, and the simple answer is that Kurt is easier for me to write, as we know so much more about both him and his background than we do about Blaine. But I did more of Blaine here, and would love to know how I did. (AKA reviews are always welcome) This story kinda demanded it anyway, lol, as Kurt is somewhat catatonic through it and would be a very confusing POV. And please don't hate on me for a "pussy" Kurt in this one, as I clearly point out he was strong enough to get through what needed to be done, and didn't break down until it was over. Because no one can be strong all the time. And yes, this is the end and I'm moving on after this, because while one part of me really wants to write the talk the next morning, the bigger part of me just can't deal with more angst.


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